• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE - New information on characters, setting, and gameplay.

RC_KeyArt-1024x576.jpg

Spike Chunsoft, Inc. today released new details about Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE including information about the game's setting, characters, gameplay mechanics, and other basic elements. The Lucid-Noir adventure game by the creators of the Danganronpa series is scheduled for a Spring 2023 release in North America and Europe.

Take on unsolved cases in Kanai Ward, a strange city caged by unending rain.
Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE takes place in Kanai Ward, a strange city where it constantly rains. The city is divided into several areas, each with a different ambiance. Kanai Ward is also the home of a megacorporation. Both the city and company have grown alongside each other, but for some time, the city has been under the control of the megacorporation. The government does not function properly, and because of its isolation, there is little interference from the outside world. In Kanai Ward, no one can oppose the megacorporation, leaving many mysteries unsolved.



Character Introduction: Protagonist and Partner

Yuma Kokohead
Japanese VA: Katsumi Fukuhara
English VA: Lucien DodgeThe protagonist suffers from amnesia. His background is unknown, but he was in possession of documents indicating that he was sent to Kanai Ward as a detective-in-training at an agency in the city. He participates in ongoing investigations. A lack of self-confidence results in a tendency to frequently complain. However, he possesses a strong sense of justice and selflessly tries to help anyone in need.



Shinigami
Japanese VA: Sayumi Suzushiro
English VA: Anjali Kunapaneni

A death god contracted to haunt Yuma. She usually appears in her spirit form. Only visible to Yuma, Shinigami is constantly floating and bobbing along at his side. Though cheerful and chatty, this death god’s sense of morality is quite far removed from that of humans. Her words and actions sometimes confuse Yuma. In the Mystery Labyrinth she transforms into a humanoid form and has the power to intervene in matters.




Character Introduction: Master Detectives use specialized powers in investigations






Master Detectives
Master Detective: Among the detectives belonging to the World Detective Organization, this is a detective with a specialized power called Forensic Forte that aids in their investigative activities. Master Detectives are experts in criminal investigation. Using their abilities, they are capable of obtaining information and evidence that would otherwise not be available to ordinary people. Together with Yuma, they take on difficult cases in Kanai Ward.


Gameplay Mechanics: Conduct investigations throughout the city and get to the bottom of a case in the Mystery Labyrinth!
Scour the streets and investigate
The entirety of Kanai Ward is rendered in 3D and can be freely explored. Visit various locations, including crime scenes, and gather leads by conducting interviews. Avoid overlooking hidden clues by thoroughly examining the crime scene from various angles.

The Mystery Labyrinth, a world that embodies mystery
Advance through the Mystery Labyrinth, a realm that embodies the mysteries of the real world, and solve puzzles related to the case in order to achieve the truth. The Mystery Labyrinth is a space where human beings cannot interfere, nor can the megacorporation suppress and cover up inconvenient truths.


The Mystery Labyrinth changes in appearance as you move through it. Move toward the hidden truth while solving the various forms of puzzles that appear along the way.

Mystery Phantoms and Reasoning Death Match
As you progress through the Mystery Labyrinth, confront Mystery Phantoms in Reasoning Death Matches. Mystery Phantoms are the embodiment of the will of the person who is trying to cover up the case and prevent the truth from being revealed. They stand before you and argue against your deductions.

In a Reasoning Death Match, it is vital to identify contradictions while dodging the claims unleashed by a Mystery Phantom. Confront contradictions with evidence and slay the Mystery Phantom with the Solution Blade to defeat it.

Mystery Phantoms appear in the form of characters in the game, but the person modeled by the Mystery Phantom may not necessarily be the culprit. In some cases, the Mystery Phantom is the embodiment of the will of the person who is trying to cover up the case for reasons other than being the culprit.

- From Spike Chunsoft

Looks like Kodaka's most ambitious game to date, hands down. I've read in some other interviews that one of the big things with the Mystery Labyrinth is that the visuals change drastically as you solve the mystery. So I hope they show off at least a bit of that in action, before release.
 
I can see this being as well received in the West as Danganronpa is, if it turns out to be well made of course. Hopefully it's coming to Steam at some point.
 

Gambit2483

Member
So this is basically Phoenix Wright (minus the court stuff) x Shin Megami x Danganronpa? This game really needs hands on previews...will keep my eye on this one
 
So this is basically Phoenix Wright (minus the court stuff) x Shin Megami x Danganronpa? This game really needs hands on previews...will keep my eye on this one
Yeah, if you're breaking it down via comparison, it's a mystery adventure game like Phoenix Wright, has some supernatural/occult aspects like SMT, and the "psychopop" art style of Danganronpa (well Danganronpa itself was kind of already Ace Attorney w/ Social Links from Persona, but anyways).

In basically every interview I've read Kodaka has said he developed Rain Code with the intention of making a genre evolving mystery adventure for the 2020s. He thinks there's one for every decade and he was Rain Code to set a new standard. This is apparently what fueled the move to 3D and why he put a lot of focus on making the Mystery Labyrinth's visually interesting.
Kodaka: The mystery adventure genre has had epoch-making works in each era. Starting with "Portopia Serial Murder Case," "Ace Attorney," "Danganronpa," and so on. We began development with the desire to create a work that would become an epoch-making mystery adventure in the 2020s.

We consider "Danganronpa" to be a work that represents the 2010s. Rather than ending it and creating a new work, I envision it as a parallel project to this.

I felt that in order to make a work that represents the 2020s, it needed to have visual strength. If the game is a text adventure, as adventure games tend to be, the number of people who will play it will be limited. There are not many people who have not played mystery adventure games before who would suddenly start playing them.

So, in order to appeal to a wider audience, we decided to create a 3D mystery adventure.
- Famitsu interview with Kodaka

We'll see if he actually pulls it off but it sounds like the team is swinging for the fences.
 
Top Bottom